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Why do I fail every time I try to serve God?
Question: Dear sir, I am writing from a very small city. I was first called by God on His mission, but I refused it due to my family’s financial situation. Now I am again starting His service, but I am not able to serve it fully. Satan always puts me in places where I always…
Read MoreI’ve talked to the leadership at church about their support of drug rehab and social drinking, but no one listens
Question: Dear Mr. Hamilton, In the church that I am attending, I’m dealing with some liberalism that scares me. I love these brothers and sisters very much but I am awful worried. This is not my home church I had to move about an hour north of my home area for work. The first issue…
Read MoreCan you accidentally make a vow?
Question: About the question that asks about sinful promises: If we made a foolish or rash vow, are we to keep it? Also, can you “accidentally” make a vow? Like, if you keep thinking “don’t think about x… Don’t think about x” and then think it, is it binding? Answer: In general, a person is expected…
Read MoreWhat are watchmen?
Question: Hello Mr. Jeffrey, I have a question: In Psalms 130:1-8, “My soul waits for the Lord more than the watchmen for the morning; indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning.” Who are these watchmen? What are they doing? Answer: Watchmen were a part of a city’s guard. They would patrol the city walls…
Read MoreWhat should we do since we learned the elders are misspending the Lord’s money?
Question: Hi! I have read and searched through your question and answer section to make sure this question hasn’t been asked before, so I hope it has not. My husband is a preacher for the church for many years. Recently, he has learned certain information in regard to how our elders are spending the Lord’s…
Read MoreDo you think God hears every prayer I pray?
Question: Do you think God hears every prayer I pray? Is He busy sometimes answering someone else? Why does the Bible say in some verses “God heard their shout?” Is that just the way it was written? I could find the verses, but I’m sure you remember. Answer: “Now this is the confidence that we…
Read MoreShould I give up my phone for Lent?
Question: Hi, I’m Catholic, and we have a thing called Lent, which is the forty days before Easter, where we give something up. I’m wondering if I should give up my phone because it’s the reason I look at porn and that. But I was thinking that I should give something else up, then give…
Read MoreWill God help us if we continue our adultery?
Question: I have been in a hard marriage for 14 years. I moved back to my home state and started college again. Within a month I was reunited by chance with a man I knew many years ago. He is also married. We have been sleeping together for six months now, and talk every day.…
Read MoreHow do we handle the mother of my fiancée’s former boyfriend?
Question: Hello, My fiancée and I are getting married soon. Recently, her grandfather has been going through trouble with cancer. It has brought up a few encouraging text messages. Here’s where my problem begins. One of the encouraging texts comes repetitively from the same person. That person is the mother of her ex-boyfriend. Although there…
Read MoreHow could the Gentiles be guilty of sin when they did not have the Law?
Question: I was trying to figure out the comparison (or contrast) between Romans 2:12-16 and Romans 7:7-11 “For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who…
Read MoreWill God understand that I have trouble loving people?
Question: I am really messed up. I was subjected to severe sexual, emotional, and physical abuse as a child. I do not love myself, do not really like myself. As I age, I keep more and more to myself, only doing shopping as needed, and going to church. I was baptized about 36 years ago…
Read MoreMy girlfriend left me twice and is now pregnant by the other man. How do I get past her past?
Question: I met this lady, several years ago. I loved her so much. I told her and we became friends. Later she dropped me and went with another person she loved, though she didn’t tell me. I still loved her so much that we got back together and this same incident happened again. She did…
Read MoreWhen was Jehoiachin released?
Question: When was Jehoiachin released? “Now it came about in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he became king, released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison” (II Kings 25:27). “Now it…
Read MoreCan I get forgiveness of my sins before I am baptized?
Question: I have accepted Jesus as my Savior but there is this little detail: I am not baptized. My family is not Catholic, so I wasn’t baptized, but I truly believe in God and have been praying a lot lately for His forgivenesses. Is it okay if I’m not baptized? Will I still be forgiven?…
Read MoreShould I wait until my boyfriend becomes a better Christian?
Question: My boyfriend and I have been dating for four years. He waited six months before we had sex. It was my decision, and I regret it to this day. I wish I knew back then what I know now. I’m afraid if I stop having sex with my boyfriend, he’ll leave me, and I’ve…
Read MoreI didn’t keep all of my sacrifices. Will God still help me?
Question: Hello, A few months ago I started going through a hard time in my life, I had a problem that I, myself, couldn’t solve, so I put it in God’s hands. As I was really desperate and willing to do anything for it, I offered a few sacrifices (yes, more than one) and I…
Read MoreSince we are under grace, can’t we be sexually active and live pleasing to the Lord?
Question: I am a Pentecostal Christian and we live by grace, not under the law. Since Jesus died on the cross we have a new covenant. So my question is: I’m in a committed relationship with my girlfriend. Sex is obviously one of the keys to a relationship. I know the message of Paul about…
Read MoreMy boyfriend has difficulty with my past. Should we get counseling?
Question: I am 34 years old. I grew up in a Christian home and have always tried to follow the right path. I have failed God on many occasions and feel as if I have been forgiven for those wrongs. I was married right after high school and had a child a year later. After…
Read MoreWhy is the Temple called a house of prayer?
Question: Can you tell me what the phrase “house of prayer” means from Matthew 21:13? Is this word used as a synecdoche or is it meant to mean literal “prayer?” If prayer was not the only thing they did at the temple, could this word have been used to mean a house of ‘worship?’ Answer:…
Read MoreWhat do you consider to be worry?
Question: What do you consider to be worry? I mean, I worry about losing interest in God and not having that same feeling I get when I desire to read a story in the Bible or I just get scared I’m doing something wrong because sometimes I don’t feel close to Him and my feelings…
Read MoreI appreciate the open and unrestricted manner in which you make your resources available
Question: Dear friends in the family of God, I wanted to take the time to thank you for your outstanding website and the quality resources it provides. I’ve read some excellent, scriptural-centered material on the site, and the collection of graphics made available is also quite nice. Your embracing of Creative Commons licensing is a…
Read MoreI moved out after my wife committed adultery a second time, but I don’t know what to do next
Question: Dear Sir, Here is my problem: I have been married for almost twenty years and dated for five years prior to getting married. We were both virgins when we got married, but we did do things that were not right, such as petting and mutual masturbation at times. I have separated from my wife…
Read MoreShould I work things out with my drug-addicted husband?
Question: My husband and I have been married for about five years. We only dated for a year before we got married. Throughout those five years, I’ve been the sole provider of the family. Now I understand that without some education he can’t get the job he wants, but he will work somewhere for a…
Read MoreShould Abimelech be counted as a judge of Israel?
Question: I am teaching the Judges to the children. My question was Abimelech really a judge? I have read both sides, and am interested to hear what your evaluation is. Thank you for your input, Jeff. Answer: “After Abimelech had reigned over Israel three years, God sent a spirit of ill will between Abimelech and…
Read MoreI keep finding sins in my life. Do I need to get baptized again?
Question: Brother Hamilton, This has been bothering me for a while, so I am going to explain my situation. I was baptized as an infant and grew up knowing all about Jesus and what is expected of a Christian. However, as a young adult, after studying the Bible, I realized my baptism was done wrong.…
Read MoreDid Jesus get back his equality with God?
Question: Christ never got back His equality (Philippians 2:6) when He returned to heaven and was seated at the right hand of God. True? Answer: “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but…
Read MoreShould I wait until after I get married to be baptized?
Question: Hi, I am in the process of getting baptized and being confirmed as a Catholic. At the same time, I am engaged and my fiance and I live together. We will be getting married next year. Should I wait to be baptized after we are married? Answer: To be clear upfront, I’m not a…
Read MoreWhy aren’t Samuel’s sons counted among the judges?
Question: Concerning your post recently about whether Abimelech was a judge or not: I remember a passage concerning the people wanting a king because of the evil of Samuel’s sons, whom he appointed to be judges over the people in I Samuel 8:1-5. I’m not sure if this would help your answer, but I remembered them…
Read MoreIs it wrong to indulge in food and drink at worship?
Question: Is it wrong for members of the church to indulge in food and drink while worship is happening? We have this problem, and I need an answer with Scripture, please. Thank you. Answer: I’ve noticed that people like to make rules instead of citing the Scriptures. It is that tendency that caused discussions between…
Read MoreWhat do you think about my moving to another country with my boyfriend?
Question: My boyfriend is thinking about moving abroad a few years from now. He wants me to come with him. I would have to find a job and start a new life because I don’t know anybody there. I would also want to live in separate apartments until we get married. He wants us to…
Read MoreI couldn’t make my pledge this month and the pastor wants God to afflict me. What do I do?
Question: I am a young lady of 26 years. I attend a church and during a fundraising, the pastor asked me to pay 2000 in our currency. I got 500 to pay him and promised to pay the rest later. He mentioned we should not cross the end of the month without paying our balance.…
Read MoreElders and Church Decline
by Matthew W. Bassford Recently, there’s been a lot of chatter on my Facebook feed about a survey of churches of Christ conducted by an organization called 21st Century Christian. According to this survey, attendance in such churches has declined by about 10 percent since 1990. I have no idea how valid their data…
Read MoreI prefer other women. Does that mean I’m not saved?
Question: I’m a Christian and a God-fearing woman. I accept Jesus Christ as my Savior and believe in His death and resurrection for the remission of our sins. My problem is that I prefer women. I know this is wrong. I have also fallen in love with another woman. I’ve never been intimate with her.…
Read MoreTo get money, I lied to a man that I’m pregnant with his child
Question: I searched about God and found this site. I am depressed and wondering what I should do. I just need prayers. I just finished college and because I haven’t gotten a job, I met this man who is 60 years old. He started providing for me. He is married to two wives, and he…
Read MoreI have no friends. I don’t trust anyone
Question: Hi, I found this website by accident. I read some stories and would like to have some guidance and advice. I’m the youngest of four siblings. My parents both work. Both make enough that we can manage. When I was five, my next oldest sister passed away when there was a big earthquake in…
Read MoreShould I marry the father of my children?
Question: Hello, I am the mother of three children. Their father left us to go and look for green pastures (I mean daily bread) in another country. He promised to come back and we would marry since we lived in sin for a long time. Due to poverty, we couldn’t afford the marriage ceremony and…
Read MoreI love this web site
Question: I love this web site. Keep up the wonderful work. We will be using your studies and sermons for studies in our home and in teaching others. Thank you for your work in the Lord’s church. Answer: Thank you for the encouragement.
Read MoreDid Isaiah’s prophecy that Damascus would cease being a city fail?
Question: I am having a conversation with an atheist online and so far I have done well handling the so-called failed prophecies and contradictions he claims. He seems rather shocked and open to studying. I do need a little help with this one because I have never heard of it nor come across anyone disputing…
Read MoreI’ve made mistakes in the past. How do I know if this is the man I should date?
Question: I’m looking for guidance, please. This past year I found my faith after six long years as an atheist. I’ve made a lot of changes in myself through the power of God since then. I met a man during the summer who turned out to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, he used the…
Read MoreWould you baptize someone you think is living in sin?
Question: Hey Brother, Would you baptize an individual who you think is still living in sin or is setting a bad example? For instance, if the individual is living with a girlfriend but claims that they do not have sex and sleep in different rooms. Answer: “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to…
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